This invention relates generally to bench grinder equipment and, more particularly, to a bench grinder safety and monitoring system that continuously monitors the gap between a tool rest or tongue guard and the front surface of a grinder contactor wheel and that de-energizes the contactor wheel if a respective gap becomes larger than a predetermined safe distance.
A bench grinder is a bench top grinding apparatus having one or more abrasive wheels (also referred to as “contactor wheels”) that operate to cut or machine the surface of a work piece when pressed against the abrasive wheel. The bench grinder may have one or more tool rests having the primary functionality of providing a surface for a work piece to rest on during use of the grinder. Also, the tool rest is situated about ⅛″ from the front surface of the abrasive wheel and provides safety against the work piece falling between the tool rest and the wheel and to prevent a user's fingers from becoming pinched therebetween. The bench grinder may also include a tongue guard upwardly displaced from the tool rest that provides similar protection of a user's fingers.
Unfortunately, the gap between a tool rest or tongue guard and the front surface of the abrasive wheel naturally becomes larger as the abrasive wheel wears away during use. This results in a dangerous condition that may result in injury. Further, a gap larger than a certain distance may be a violation of OSHA regulations and result in fines and loss of productivity.
Therefore, it would be desirable to have a safety and monitoring system in use with a bench grinder that constantly monitors the gap between a tool rest or tongue guard and the front surface of a contactor wheel. Further, it would be desirable to have a safety and monitoring system that de-energizes the contactor wheel if a respective gap is detected as being larger than a safe distance. In addition, it would be desirable to have a safety and monitoring system that prohibits re-energizing the contactor wheel following a power outage until an activation member is proactively and manually actuated by a user.